Purgatory: Hunted
by TheHood13
Summary: It's been 3 months since Oliver, Slade and Shado killed Fyers. They discover that someone... something is brutally killing and hunting the remainder of Fyers' men. It's not long before they realise that they will be next and that they too, will be hunted by this... Predator. [Rated M for graphic violence]
1. Chapter 1

Slade navigated his way through the forest of Lian Yu, following the trail back to the fuselage. It was late morning, around 10:30. Slade had left an hour earlier to catch something for lunch. As usual for him, it was another successful hunt, catching two fowls.

The island may have been purgatory, but for once, Slade found himself admiring the beauty and tranquillity of the forest as he made his way through it. After Fyers had been killed along with the majority of his men, Oliver and Shado and him were just three people stranded on island, not an ASIS agent and two prisoners being forcefully kept here against their will. A sense of normalcy had somewhat been restored to the island… Somewhat…

He dwelled in his thoughts throughout the trek, thinking about his son Joe, and his wife, Adeline. He and Adeline had regrettably lost some intimacy and affection for one another. Of course, they still loved each other, but before he got stranded on Lian Yu, they were growing apart. Him being an ASIS agent was exceptionally stressful for her, having your husband be gone for weeks at a time, and always having to wonder whether or not he would return alive or dead. Perhaps this had something to do with the way he was starting to feel towards Shado. He knew it would never work though. He was married, and she was more inclined to the still playboy-ish, younger Oliver. He really cared for her, but he was probably a bit infatuated due to being touch-starved after being on Lian Yu for close to a year now. He payed attention to the chirping of the birds and the distant sound of a waterfall, reminding him of the camping trips he used to go on with Joe, including the one where he slit the throat of Sen Ming after he gave him the location of Yao Fei Gulong. '_Ah yes, the camping trip that sent me to this godforsaken island', _he thought to himself.

His admiration for the wilderness was cut short by the smell of rotting flesh hitting his nostrils. '_Not again'_, he thought. The stench of death was rife through the path ahead of him. It could be a pig, but Slade's gut told him otherwise. He scanned the bush around him for any signs of a corpse. He put the fowls down at the base of a tree next to him, before drawing a pistol in his right hand and a sword in his other. He treaded carefully on the path ahead of him, his awareness heightened as he processed all of the sensory information that was flooding his brain. The smell of death, the sounds of the birds chirping, the bitter taste of his saliva, the shape of the M1911 handle in his hand and finally…

The sight of the corpse lying next to the bush to his left. He kept his pistol drawn at the body until he was sure it was dead. When he was close enough, he probed the man's shoulder with his sword… no response. Slade relaxed slightly, placing his sword back in the sheath, but he kept his pistol in his hand. The man was definitely one of Fyers' former mercenaries. He turned the man's head over to face him and was met with a gruesome sight.

The man's face as ripped to shreds, and his neck was nearly clean ripped off of the body's shoulders, hanging onto the body by a thread. There were two deep, clean slices on the man's throat, the type of wound inflicted by double blades. Slade inspected the far side of the man, where a large incision was made through his left ribcage. He peeked inside, being met with the cavity of where his organs would've been had they not been removed.

Slade closed his eyes, taking a deep breath before walking back to pick up the fowls and continue on the trail. They had known that a couple of groups of Fyers' men had survived the bombing of the camp, but they hadn't encountered them as of yet. This wasn't the first body Slade had seen like this. He had come across two other bodies like this over the past week. He had tried to think of several explanations as to who was doing this, but now, he was coming to the realisation that perhaps it wasn't who… but what.

* * *

**Author's Note: There's the first chapter folks. Just a little teaser for what's to come. Please leave reviews. I'd really love to hear what you guys think.**


	2. Chapter 2

"Here, drink", said Oliver as he tipped the bowl of water to Shado's mouth. She lifted her head slowly, and Oliver gently poured water into her mouth. She was sick, having picked up an infection or parasite somehow. She had a high fever, was very lethargic and was sweating a lot. Over the past week, Oliver was staying behind and taking care of her while Slade was hunting and getting food.

"Looks like it's Kentucky for lunch" said Slade as he walked in to the fuselage, placing the fowls on the box next to Shado, "How are you feeling?" he asked her.

"St… still horrible", she whispered, "More", she said, as Oliver tipped more water into her mouth.

"Anything interesting happen on your hunt?" asked Oliver.

"Not really" replied Slade, "Came across another one of Fyers' men. He was already dead."

"What happened to him?" asked Oliver

"Looks like he died from natural causes" lied Slade.

"That's the third body you've come across this week."

"It's nothing to worry about kid. Do you need anything else?" asked Slade to Shado.

"No, I'm fine" she said

"Ok, get some rest", said Oliver. She smiled and closed her eyes. Oliver looked up at Slade, both with the same expressions on their faces. They were worried about her. Shado's condition seemed to be worsening every day, and leaving it untreated could have dire consequences. Oliver gestured with his head to Slade that they go outside and talk. Slade nodded, as they both exited the fuselage, before facing one another.

"What do you think it is?" asked Oliver

"I don't know kid. Could be anything. An infection, a parasite, maybe just a flu. There's no way of telling", replied Slade

"We can't take the risk. What if it's something really bad?"

"Then there's not much we can do, kid. We'll just have to wait for it to pass."

"No, there is", said Oliver, remembering, "Yao Fei's herbs."

"Good idea."

"There's just one problem. The bundle that I took from the cave and gave to you was the last of it."

"Don't worry kid, there's plenty more on this island. I think I know where he got them from. I can probably go get some now and be back before lunch is cooked."

"Alright, good idea. I'll stay behind with Shad…" Oliver and Slade were jolted out of their conversation by several screams and gunshots echoing through the forest.

"What the hell?" muttered Oliver, as several more gunshots rang out before a sudden silence, "What the hell just happened to them?"

"I don't know, but what I do know, is that those screams are coming from the direction of where the herbs are"

"What? You're not still thinking of going out there are you?"

"Look kid, most likely these guys got caught in a booby trap or were attacked by a wild boar. Judging by the screams and gunshots, there's probably no more than 5 of these guys. If they are Fyers' men or have bad intentions, then we need to eliminate them. And Shado needs the herbs."

"You can't do it alone Slade". Oliver and Slade whipped around to see Shado standing in the entrance of the fuselage, leaning on the sides for support, "Take Oliver with you."

"What? No way, I'm not leaving you", said Oliver sternly.

"I'll be fine. I have Fyers' proximity detector and the A3 in case anyone uninvited arrives." Shado was referring to the AUG A3, the Australian Defence Force and ASIS standard issue carbine. Slade rarely used it, preferring to save it for only dire situations.

"She'll be fine kid. We'll be gone for less than a couple of hours" said Slade. Oliver reluctantly agreed to go with Slade, arming himself with the bow and a holstered pistol, while Slade took his usual double swords and double pistols. Sure, Oliver had grown a lot over the past several months, but he was still very new to this life. It was easy for Slade and Shado to be composed with the screams and gunshots around them, but he was still very anxious. Deep down, he really hoped that he wouldn't have to fire off any arrows. It would be better if all of those men were dead…

Or so he thought…

* * *

Oliver and Slade navigated through the forest for about 30 minutes. They had already found several bushes where the herbs were growing and harvested plenty, but they were now heading towards the screams. They realised they were getting close when the smell of gunpowder and blood started to wade through their nostrils. Slade raised his fist, signalling to Oliver to stop. They were close. Slade looked ahead through the brush with his binoculars for several seconds, trying to identify any threat and decipher what lay ahead of them.

After a few seconds, he immediately stood up, abandoning their crouching stealth position.

"What are you doing? They'll see us" whispered Oliver nervously.

"No they won't kid" replied Slade solemnly.

"Why not?" said Oliver, refusing to abandon his crouching position.

"Because they're all dead."

The words initially came as a slight form of relief to Oliver, but as he stood up and saw the wreckage of the camp, he was shocked to his core. The floor was littered with blood, as a single body lay on the ground next to two detached limbs. The limbs were lying in pools of blood, with broken bones sticking out of them. The lone tent had a large burn hole in it. As he and Slade slowly walked towards the camp cautiously, they managed to get a better view of the corpses. Oliver had done well to supress the urge to vomit so far, but he couldn't hold it back anymore.

Slade looked with disgust as he saw the lone body hanging from the tree… skinless. He inspected the body on the floor. It wasn't just missing limbs. The flesh at the back of the head down to the lower back was protruding up, showcasing a cavity where the skull and entire spinal cord would be had they not been ripped out. He peeked inside the tent. He could see the blood scattered on every side of it, with an army of ants and bugs festering around the hole that was burnt through the man's chest. '_Fuck me dead'_, Slade thought to himself. He walked around the camp quickly, looking for any other clues or indicators of what happened.

"What the hell happened here?" asked Oliver as he walked towards Slade, still wiping his mouth.

"Ambush, kid", replied Slade solemnly, "There was a firefight, but looking at the bullet marks on the trees, they were shooting in all directions. They didn't know where or what they were shooting at."

"Why did they skin him?" asked Oliver

"I don't know kid"

"What the hell is going? Who the hell could've done this?" said Oliver, panicking,

"Kid, relax. It's probably just a bunch of punks who are trying to send a message to anybody else on the island. I've found tracks kid, a couple of Fyers' men made it out, meaning whoever did this is clearly not heading towards the fuselage. Hell, they may just be a hit squad here to eliminate Fyers' men, tying up loose ends and not caring or knowing about us. We'll be alright kid. Let's get these herbs back to Shado, and then we can worry about this. Do you understand me?" said Slade. Oliver replied with the nod of his head, but he was still extremely unnerved.

There was definitely someone, or something out there that did this, and he doubted that they were going to leave Oliver, Slade and Shado alone.

* * *

"Did you hear that?" asked Oliver as he whipped his around.

"Hear what?" asked Slade.

"It… it was like a… a crackling noise."

"Like someone stepping on twigs?"

"No, Slade. It was like… I don't know."

"You must be imagining things."

Oliver and Slade had started to make their way back to the fuselage. Even though he hadn't done anything strenuous, Oliver felt that the strength from his body had been sapped by the horrendous sight of those tortured bodies. Oliver flicked his tongue around in his mouth, jarring it against his dry palette.

"Slade. Water break. Two minutes" requested Oliver.

"Sure. I'll move just slightly ahead on the trail, make sure everything is clear."

Oliver nodded in reply, before taking several gulps of the water, trying to wash away the remaining taste of his vomit. He splashed himself on his face and on his hair to cool down. A full minute passed. '_Where's Slade?', _he thought to himself. The silence of the forest was starting to worry Oliver.

"Slade" he called out, to no response. He quickly shot to his feet and nocked an arrow on his bow, running ahead on the trail. He quickly moved around a large tree, letting out a deep breath, relieved to see Slade. He was just standing there, looking far off to the right of the trail, "Slade!" Oliver called out again, much louder this time causing Slade's head to snap back in Oliver's direction.

"What?" he asked, slightly irritated.

"What's going on? What are you looking at?"

"There's something in those trees kid", he said, so softly that it was almost inaudible. Oliver scanned the branches and canopies in front of him. Nothing.

"I don't see anything Slade"

"Look closely. 15 meters up". Oliver looked once again, still failing to see anything. Maybe Slade did see something. From the time that they reached the camp, he had this weird feeling as if he was being watched… like they were being stalked. He also started to notice the weird crackling noise, which sounded almost like a growl, echoing through the jungle.

And then…

He spotted a bird's nest on the base on the branch. That was probably what Slade saw. Those crackling sounds were probably just his mind playing tricks on him, "Slade, that's a bird nest."

Slade continued to stare at the trees for a few more seconds, before finally turning back to Oliver and cracking a half-smile.

"You're right kid. It's probably nothing", he said before turning back to the trail and continuing to walk. Another quick glance at the trees from Slade didn't go unnoticed by Oliver. Slade knew something… Something had him spooked. He knew more than he was letting on…

* * *

**Please leave a review guys. I'd love to hear your thoughts!**


	3. Chapter 3

Oliver couldn't have been more relieved to have made it back to the fuselage. It wasn't exactly a fortress, but it felt quite secure. He was also relieved to see Shado alright and unharmed, but she was still sick.

"What happened?" asked Shado as she sat upright after greeting them.

"They were Fyers' old men. They got ambushed" said Oliver.

"By who?"

"We don't know, but whoever they are, they're… sick" said Oliver, his tone full of disgust.

"Why? What happened out there?"

"There were four men. One had a hole burnt through his chest. Two were skinned. The last one… his skull and spine was removed from his body." described Oliver, still visibly upset with what they saw, "I had this weird feeling on the walk back too… like we were being watched, or something."

Oliver looked at Slade, who was being unusually silent. He wasn't a man of many words, but right now, he wasn't just quiet. He was focused. Deep in thought. Calculating. Slade looked over at Shado, whose facial expression had also changed once Oliver revealed the details of their experience. Slade and Shado had the same looks on their faces. Worry, distress… recognition. Shado looked like she was about to say something, but Slade quickly shut her down.

"Don't you say what I think you're about to say!" he said sternly.

"Say what?" asked Oliver impatiently, "Hey, both of you know something and neither of you are telling me!"

"It… it wasn't any men who did those things… it was a Predator" said Shado. Slade immediately scoffed and turned away, but Oliver was just more confused.

"What? A predator? Like a lion, or…"

"No. It's called a Predator… it's an alien" said Slade

"An alien? Have you lost your mind? Is this some sort of a sick joke?"

"No kid! It isn't!" replied Slade scornfully.

"1987, Guatemala" said Shado, as she started explaining, "A US Special Forces Unit was sent into the jungle to eliminate guerrillas in the area. Seven men. Only one made it out. In his debrief, he said that… one by one, they were… eliminated… hunted… until he was the only man left. By then, he had figured out the Predator's strengths and weaknesses. It saw in infrared vision. It used a camouflage that allowed it to blend in with the jungle and remain unseen. He beat it by setting traps, masking his heat signature with mud, and making a bonfire that rendered its camouflage useless."

"ASIS has the same report. The Predator has an honour code. If you can outsmart it or best it, it will remove its armour and gadgets and engage in a hand-to-hand duel with you. Not that it's fair fight anyway, because they're far bigger and stronger than any human. They also don't hurt unarmed or sick people, which is why I think we should wait to give Shado the herbs."

"What? Slade, she may be dying and the herbs are the only thing that will heal her" said Oliver

"You think I don't know that kid?! Her being sick at least gives her a guaranteed chance of survival, the same can't be said for you or me. Our only hope is to fortify this area and let him come to us instead of us going after him."

"Slade is right", added Shado, "The Predator won't harm me if I'm sick. Our advantage is that we know what to expect from it, but it doesn't know what to expect from us. We can beat it, if we work together". Oliver was almost completely zoned out at this stage. He was paralysed. He didn't know what to do or what even to think.

"Look kid, I know you didn't sign up for any of this, but we're here now. Once it is done with Fyers' men, it'll come for us, and it will kill us. The only way we'll ever make it off this island is if we kill this thing before it kills us. We need you on board kid."

Oliver slowly turned his head to look at Slade. Flashes of his mom, Thea, Tommy and Laurel all whipped through his mind. He realised that this was it. He needed to make a stand now, for them.

"I'm ready Slade" he replied, "So what's the plan?"

"We go to war… tonight"

* * *

Oliver and Shado were together by a nearby stream, not too far from the fuselage. Fyers' proximity detector showed them that the two remaining mercenaries were still alive and hours away from the fuselage, which meant that the Predator probably was still occupied with them. Oliver and Shado were collecting water and a bucket of mud. She was still sick, but after eating had regained some strength and decided to help Oliver and Slade prepare for the upcoming battle.

Oliver was still very curious as to how Shado knew so much about the Predator. Given that Slade was an elite ASIS operative, he probably would have had access to such an important file, but as far as he knew, Shado was just a medical student that had a father in the Chinese military.

"How do you know so much about the Predator?" asked Oliver.

"My father told me several stories. One in particular. In 1789 when Qing Dynasty forts were sieged by the Vietnamese, many Chinese soldiers fled into the surrounding forest. Vietnamese reconnaissance found many Chinese soldiers butchered, just like how you're describing. Soon, Vietnamese soldiers were hunted too, and the Predator was given a name… 制造男人奖杯的恶魔. The Demon who makes trophies of men."

"How did you know about Guatemala?"

"When my father disappeared, I did everything I could to try and find him. I searched every inch of his office at our home, and I ended up finding many copies of his files from when he was in the army. I read through all of them, searching for anything that could be a clue to what happened to him. One of the files was the report of what happened in Guatemala."

"Am I going to make it home?" asked Oliver, somberly. Shado looked at Oliver with wide eyes, confused by his question.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"What chance do we have Shado? Realistically."

"Enough to make it count."

* * *

Despite being back at the fuselage, Oliver remained as observant as he'd ever been in his life. He felt like his body had been constantly pumping adrenaline since he came across the camp site. The wood for the bonfire had been collecting and set up in the center of the field. Oliver stood by the door to the fuselage, watching intently as Slade walked back from the bonfire set up. He looked to the skies, remembering how at times he'd stargaze with Laurel and they'd often wonder if there was something out there. Now, he got his answer. He watched as several birds soared, but one caught his eyes.

"That's a weird looking bird" remarked Oliver, just as Slade had walked to right in front of him. Slade turned around, laying eyes on the large-winged figure soaring over the clearing.

"That's not a bird kid" said Slade, as he ran past Oliver into the fuselage, immediately picking up his sniper rifle and loading a magazine. Oliver watched tentatively as Slade dropped to one knee and took aim. The 'bird' had flown over the fuselage, and was now circling around to return to where it came from. Just before it was out of sight, Slade fired a shot, causing the bird to shatter into several pieces as a metallic collision echoed after the gunshot. Oliver watched in shock as the pieces fell from the sky, not a single drop of blood anywhere in sight. That wasn't a bird.

"That was a reconnaissance drone" said Slade.


	4. Chapter 4

Oliver stood atop a branch on a tree, overlooking the field next to the fuselage. As he saw Slade ready himself behind the torn-off wing of the plane, he looked to the sky. With no light pollution at all, the night sky was powdered with hundreds of stars. He reached into the zipped pocket of his pants, pulling out his picture of Laurel. The full moonlight was enough for him to look at it clearly. He put the picture back into his pocket as he thought of everyone else he was doing this for. His mother, Tommy, Thea.

He glanced back at Slade, who climbed atop the wing and turned to face Oliver to his left. Oliver gave him the thumbs up signal as he proceeded to light a flame arrow on a piece of flint and nocked it on his bow. Slade took a deep breath, before bellowing at the top of his lungs, declaring to the whole jungle that they were ready for war.

Oliver waited for Slade's scream to echo several times throughout the forest, before he drew back the string on the bow, and set his eyes square on his target, the pile of branches in the center of the field. He calmly breathed, remembering the advice Yao Fei gave him the very first time he ever held a bow. He felt the sweat on his forehead slowly starting to dribble down his mud-smeared face, as he let go of the string, watching as the arrow glided through the air. Right on target, the branches burst into a huge flame, lighting up the entire field. Now all he and Slade had to do was wait…

* * *

Shado sat down at the base of a tree, deep into the forest 100 yards behind Oliver. She still hadn't drank the herbs, and she was feeling extremely lethargic and weak again, starting to sweat profusely. She wasn't covered in any mud and she didn't have any weapons with her. She heard the sound of the bonfire going up in flames several minutes ago and expected the arrival of the Predator at any moment now. The proximity detector showed that the Predator had killed the remaining two men, so it was definitely setting its sights on the fuselage now.

She closed her eyes, sitting deep in her thoughts of her twin sister, Mei, wondering where and what Mei was doing in the world. Losing Yao Fei was very hard for her, and she couldn't imagine what she must have felt when Shado was kidnapped too. Shado really hoped that perhaps one day, she'd be able to make it home and provide closure to her sister.

_Crrrrapapapapapacccrrrrr_

The sounds of a crackling growl sent heaved adrenaline into her bloodstream as her thoughts were now blanked out. She looked left and right, surveying the jungle for the source of the sound. She looked down at her chest, realising that there were three red dots plastered there. She followed the laser beams with her eyes to the source… Her 2 o' clock, 15 meters ahead of her. She managed to make out the silhouette of the Predator despite its use of the camouflage.

She didn't move at all, staring intently at the origin of the laser beam. The Predator slowly took several steps towards her until he was right in front of her. She had stared down death before, multiple times, but she was truly frightened at the sight of the 7 foot tall agent of death in front of her. It studied her for several seconds, analysing her every breath and heartbeat. It switched between the various modes of sight installed in its helmet, using each one to gauge Shado.

After several seconds, which felt like hours to Shado, the laser sight disappeared and the Predator simply walked past her, making its way to the bonfire. Shado let out a huge sigh of relief as the Predator spared her. As soon as it was far enough away, she quickly took out a small bag and opened it… the herbs. She threw them into her mouth and she gulped them down with a water bottle next to her. _They better work fast_, she thought to herself.

* * *

Oliver hugged the body of the tree next to him, trying to blend in. He kept an eye on Slade, who sat behind the torn-off wing with his sniper rifle, before turning his attention to the clearing in front of him. He was razer-focused, the thought of his family not far from his mind at all. '_Where the fuck is it?'_ he thought to himself. Judging by the direction of where the reconnaissance drone was heading, surely the Predator would've appeared by the other side of the clearing by now.

That's when he heard the crackling growl beneath him, the same one he had heard in the forest earlier. His heart momentarily skipped a beat, as he looked down and saw the large camouflaged figure slowly exiting the forest beneath him. Oliver tried to control his breathing and calm himself. He never planned on getting this close to it. He could feel his heart pounding against his chest, worrying for a second that the Predator might pick up his heartbeat due to how hard and fast it was beating. He watched it as it carefully treaded towards the bonfire in the center of the field, its camouflage now useless as the flame lit up the silhouette of its body.

As it neared the center of the bonfire, Oliver drew an explosive arrow that they had salvaged from Fyers' camp site. They were saving it for a rainy day, and right now, it was pouring like hell. He steadied himself, focusing his sight before shooting the arrow. It landed right next to the Predator, with the explosion knocking it off-balance and disorientating it. It appeared fully for the first time as it un-camouflaged itself.

"Dammit" he muttered to himself. He was aiming for its chest, but the wind had picked up and blown the arrow off its original path.

Slade fired a shot at the Predator's chest, noticing the bullet only barely penetrating the chest armour of it. He fired another shot, this time at the gut of the Predator. It squealed in pain as the bullet penetrated its skin. Slade fired another shot, this time at its leg. Its cries of pain were ghastly, sending chills down Slade's spine for the first time in years.

Oliver drew another arrow, a regular one this time. Fully accounting for the wind, he aimed for the other leg of the Predator, hitting his target this time. The Predator collapsed onto one knee, and for a second, Oliver believed that they might actually be killing this thing. However, it quickly pulled the arrow out of its leg and whipped around. It still couldn't see Oliver, but its helmet traced the source of the arrow back to where Oliver was standing. Oliver saw the three-dot laser activate and appear right next to him. He had no other option, as he immediately jumped from the branch, just making it off in time before he was fried by the plasma blast.

Meanwhile, Slade reloaded as the Predator started to walk towards Oliver's location. He took another shot at its head, with the bullet failing to penetrate the helmet. He quickly pulled back the bolt, ejecting a shell before firing again at the Predator's belly. That bullet penetrated it, but he had given up his location in the process. It turned around to face him now, aiming the plasma gun at his rifle. Slade didn't have time to move, as the blast landed right in front of him, knocking him back several meters. His head snapped back onto the ground when he landed, dazing him momentarily. It took him several seconds to come to.

His plans to crawl towards the A3 hidden in a nearby bush were abruptly stopped, as he felt a massive hand wrap around his shoulders and fling him several meters in the direction of the bonfire. He got up, trying to face the massive figure in front of him. He instinctively reached for his pistol, but he quickly felt a tremendous smack across the left side of his face, knocking him to the ground immediately. The sensation of his brain rattling inside his skull intensified, while his left ear was ringing. Still, he felt the need to taunt the Predator.

"My mother gave me better backhands than that" said Slade with a smile while struggling to get to his knees. He wondered if the Predator understood those words for a second before realising it must have as the Predator threw a colossal kick into his stomach. He tried getting up once again, before it slapped him again, the stinging so intense that Slade thought the skin might have been ripped off his face.

Oliver had managed to recuperate after the fall from the tree. He braced for the impact, so he didn't hurt himself too badly, but he was still in pain. He looked to the bonfire, and saw Slade scrambling away from the Predator while it approached him. He quickly searched the ground for the bow, grateful to see that it had not been damaged in the fall. He quickly fired an arrow, desperate to save Slade.

The Predator screamed as the arrow penetrated through its shoulder. Oliver fired another one but the Predator anticipated it and caught the arrow. Oliver nocked another arrow, but he knew what to do this time. Just before he let go of the bowstring, he swiftly lowered the bow. The Predator moved its left hand to anticipate another arrow, but its path changed, and the arrow penetrated him in the leg once again.

_'What the hell is it going to take for this thing to die?'_ thought Oliver.

He threw his hand back towards his quiver, eager to fire more arrows that would hopefully be the killing blows on the Predator, but it wasn't meant to be. His hand glided through the air, catching nothing. He squirmed his hand around, flailing his fingers trying to find anything in the quiver. It was empty. He looked to the floor around him, spotting a lone arrow hidden in the leaves. He quickly knelt down to grab it, his fingers centimeters away from it before the three-dotted laser materialised on his chest.

He slowly stood up, turning towards the alien hunter. The realisation of his failure swept throughout his entire body as he stood eyeing the demon in front of him. Of all the ways that Oliver Queen thought he might die, killed by an extraterrestrial sports hunter was not one that he ever imagined. He dropped the bow from his hand, wishing for a quick and painless death.

A wish that was not granted to him…


	5. Chapter 5

Oliver stood helpless, expecting the Predator to fire a plasma blast at him any second. He glanced towards Slade, who was on one knee, still recovering from the punishment he received at the hands of the Predator. The Predator's hand lifted, and Oliver flinched, closing his eyes, anticipating the advent of the plasma blast that would end his life.

It didn't come.

He was still alive.

He opened his eyes, seeing the Predator give him the simple universal hand gesture of 'come here'. He was totally and utterly confused, as he carefully treaded towards the Predator. With each step, he felt as if he was sinking, being swallowed up by the quicksand of his fear and failure to make it back home to his family. With each step, he tried to think of another way to kill the Predator, but by the next step, had shot down the idea because it simply wouldn't work. He walked until he was just a couple of meters in front of the Predator.

It lunged forward, smacking him on the right side of his face, sending him stumbling towards Slade. The initial pain wasn't one of stinging, or hurt. It was different. He felt as if his soul had temporarily been knocked out of his body, and it was slowly returning to his body through the bruise that the Predator just inflicted on him.

"Shoot it", he pleaded with Slade.

"I can't kid," replied Slade somberly, as he felt the empty holsters on his side. His handguns must have been dislodged in the fight. Oliver examined Slade's face as he tried to get up. The mud was still plastered over the right side of his face, but the backhand from the Predator wiped all of the mud off the left side of his face. A spitting image of Slade's operational mask.

They both turned to look at the Predator as they stumbled onto their feet. The Predator just stood there, not moving at all. Slowly, it reached for the arrows lodged in its shoulder and leg, pulling them out. It started reaching for its helmet, pulling out the several tubes connected to it. It detached the plasma gun from its shoulder, throwing it to the ground.

"What the hell is it doing?" asked Oliver.

"We've earned its respect."

The plate of armour on its chest was removed too, before it finally started to reach for the helmet. Slowly, it lifted the mask off its face, revealing its horrid mandibles. It roared at Oliver and Slade, officially declaring the challenge. Slade withdrew both of his swords from his back, handing one to Oliver. The Predator, recognising that they had chosen a knife duel, extended its wrist-blades on its right hand.

"Remember what I told you the first time you used a sword?" asked Slade, as he and Oliver circled the Predator.

"Keep your blade up, always stay behind your sword" replied Oliver.

"Now would be a good time to heed that advice."

Oliver and Slade both simultaneously charged at the Predator, the oscillations of their blades failing to make contact with skin as the Predator blocked their strikes. Every times their blades were swung, they either missed or were met with the sound of clacking metal. The chaos momentarily stopped, as Oliver and Slade exchanged looks of disbelief at the fact that they had failed to make a single incision on the Predator.

The duel resumed, as it appeared once again that the Predator had a sixth sense that allowed it to predict each and every one of Oliver and Slade's moves correctly. Slade brought his blade down from above. A telegraphed move, but a necessary one to draw its attention. The Predator blocked it before pushing Slade away and turning to its left to attempt to decapitate Oliver. Oliver ducked under the blades, briskly slicing across the Predator's abdomen.

All it seemingly did was anger the Predator even further. It charged towards Oliver and Slade, striking with more vigour and purpose. Oliver and Slade were faster by only a hair as they evaded and blocked the Predator's strikes. Oliver leaned back to avoid a swing of the wrist-blades. He succeeded in keeping his head attached to his body, but the slightly downward trajectory of the swing causes a large gash on Oliver's left shoulder. He had trained a lot with Slade, but he was still an amateur when it came to sword fighting. The next strike from the Predator came with its fist, as it rammed its knuckles into Oliver's abdomen. Oliver felt as if his lungs had completely shut down as he slumped down onto all fours, trying to breath.

Slade kicked the Predator away from Oliver, engaging in the duel by himself for the moment. It had been a while since someone had bested him in a swordfight. He was always the slightly better swordsman than Billy, and few other ASIS agents could keep up with his swordsmanship. He would've been more thrilled about meeting an equal if it wasn't an alien sports hunter in front of him. He continued to slash at the Predator, managing to slice a gash on the Predator's arm. The Predator retaliated by slashing at Slade's abdomen. Slade managed to partially parry the strike as it only grazed his ribcage. He was waiting for Oliver to get back up and help him at any moment, but he knew the kid was probably done for. He may be in this fight all by himself.

* * *

Shado had managed to regain majority of her strength and was making her away to the field, stumbling through the forest. She had heard the explosions and gunshots, but the fight was still continuing, now the sounds of blades cackling on eachother echoing throughout Lian Yu. She narrowed her eyesight as she reached the clearing. Oliver was on all fours, and it looked like he was about to vomit. Slade was duelling with the Predator by himself.

She watched as they both drew blood from eachother with non-fatal moves, the bonfire still burning brightly behind them. Slade didn't have time on his side. He would tire before the Predator, he would make a mistake before it and the consequences would be fatal. She looked to the floor in front of her, her eyes catching the bow. She quickly picked it up, and turned to her left. At the base of the tree which Oliver had initially perched himself on lay a small blanket. She quickly unrolled it and scanned the array of arrows placed in front of her. All of them were regular.

She quickly picked up 4 of the arrows, placing them in her hand that was holding the bow. She nocked one of them quickly, and got ready to aim before something caught her eye. One more arrow on the floor. An incendiary arrow.

* * *

Slade was tiring. He felt it as his muscles started to give up on him. It was not an issue of his conditioning. He was sure that he was probably concussed, and the strikes to the abdomen from the Predator earlier sapped a lot of his energy too. He found himself flailing as the Predator ducked under his blade, slicing his leg. Slade dropped to one knee before the Predator, his lower body no longer able to support his weight. He stared up into the Predator's eyes, taking solace in the fact that at least he didn't die like a coward. The Predator slowly raised its wrist-blades, preparing to swiftly decapitate Slade.

Suddenly, Slade thought he heard the snap of a bow as he instinctively dived to the floor. The sound of an arrow penetrating flesh for a split second processed in his ears before the explosion deafened him. He cupped his hands around his ears, before getting back to his feet. He looked back at the forest, spotting Shado holding the bow. He smiled at her and nodded, before turning his attention back to the Predator. He saw Oliver had gotten back up as well and was walking towards the Predator too.

It lay on the floor, still alive even though a large chunk of its chest was missing. Oliver and Slade had no intention of taking any chances. They furiously brought their blades down on the Predator, slashing its abdomen, stabbing its belly. They weren't intent on having it die by a thousand counts, but no matter what they did, it seemed to refuse to die. It lifted its left hand trying to shield itself from the slashes, but only succeeded in having its left arm detached by Slade's blade. Finally, Oliver and Slade were too exhausted to swing anymore, the upper body of the Predator glowed green from all the blood oozing out of the multiple wounds. Several of the gashes were so deep that Oliver and Slade could see its internal organs.

They stood over the Predator, which hung onto its life by a thread. The grass around them was speckled with green blood. The sun had just started to rise over Lian Yu, the starry night slowly beginning to dissipate as the shades of a blue daytime sky began to creep in.

"You… are one fucking… ugly cunt" remarked Slade. If Oliver had the strength to laugh, he might have. Of course he knew Slade was Australian, but at times he often just forgot about it. Every now and then, he reminded Oliver whenever he said the word cunt or drongo. Oliver's smile quickly turned into a scowl when he heard a low, raspy voice emanating from the Predator.

"You… are… one… fuckin…"

With a swift swing of his blade, Slade sliced the throat of the Predator, cutting its final words short as green blood squirted out of its mouth.

"Shut the fuck up" said Slade angrily, before he collapsed onto the floor to sit. Oliver followed suit, as Shado walked up to them and sat in front of the Predator's body. The three of them rested for a few minutes, enjoying the sounds of the early birds chirping and appreciating how the sunlight was starting to brighten the land.

"What do we do with the body?" asked Oliver.

"We burn it kid" replied Slade.

"We can keep some of its tech, see if any of it is useful" suggested Shado.

"Sure" muttered Slade, as he and Oliver slowly rose to their feet before dragging the Predator's body together while Shado walked to the fuselage to get gasoline.

They tossed its body directly over the bonfire, before pouring the gasoline over, causing the flames to shoot up high. For sure, everything was going to be ash in a few hours. With the battle now over, the adrenaline had started to slowly leave their bodies, and the real pain of their wounds started to agonize them. Slade leaned on Oliver and Shado's shoulders for support as his leg had become too unbearable to stand on.

"You sure Lian Yu means Purgatory?" asked Oliver as he glanced towards Shado, "Because, I'm pretty sure this place is Hell"

He drew a chuckle from Slade and laughter from Shado as they walked back to the fuselage, living to fight another day.

* * *

**THE END**


End file.
